Weekly Report - 28 March 2019 (WR-19-12)

BRAZIL: Clash of ‘old’ and ‘new’ politics imperils reforms

President Jair Bolsonaro came to power promising a new way of doing politics, by putting an end to the pork-barrelling of the past and choosing appointments based on technical criteria rather than political affiliation or, indeed, experience. Less than three months in, his government faces serious difficulties. Infighting divides cabinet ministers. Dismissals and resignations amongst the lower levels of government are frequent. And communication between the executive and the legislature has broken down, meaning that flagship reforms are stuck in congress. In the face of this, support for Bolsonaro and confidence in the government are waning.